Magic cape

  

I love seeing this sea hare, especially up close, when you can see the bright blue-green spots (and tiny orange dots, too, if you look carefully).  Meet Hedgpeth's Sea Hare (Elysia hedgpethi)!  [I posted about this species a few years ago — see "Not a flatworm!" on 26 June 2013.]

Last week, my first view of this individual was very different.  Under water, they are transformed into the beautiful sea hare in the first photo. But out of water, they look like a flattened green/black blob on the rock:

 

 

I was curious about finding the sea hare on the rock wall.  In the past I've found them near their food, e.g., a green seaweed called Bryopsis corticulans.  So I started scanning and soon located a clump of Bryopsis:

 

 

 

I kept searching and eventually found even more Bryopsis (below).  And this time there were a couple of patches that looked suspicious.  Can you spot the sea hares in the photo below?

 

 

 

Yes!  There's a large individual on the lower left side, and a smaller individual on the lower right side.  They look so much like the Bryopsis! But you can see that they're a little smoother and shinier.  Here's a closer view of the larger individual:

 

 

Their wonderful green lateral flaps with scattered spots always makes me think of a magic cape!

 

 

 

Photographed in Monterey County on 13 August 2022.